VJMC #147

SN I K OP ATEH L I NY U P D O C R • RALL GAN U E O L A TI O N A A L L B Quarterly Club Mag K U T Z T www.vjmc.org.au A -SU 19 N ERE I -20 -WH

ISSUE 147

VJMC INC AUSTR ALIA

VJMC Inc Australia The Australian branch of the VJMC is a registered association incorporated in the state of New South Wales.

Objectives of the VJMC: To foster the preservation, restoration, riding and enjoyment of older Japanese motorcycles.

Club Postal Address PO Box 254 Modbury North SA 5092 Membership Applications & Renewals VJMC Inc, PO Box 254 Modbury North SA 5092 Website www.vjmc.org.au VJMC Australia Committee President John McNair | johnfour750@hotmail.com Secretary Frank Wood | frankozzie10@gmail.com Treasurer Steve Phelps | steve.phelps@bigpond.com Vice President/Public Officer David Bernardi | mrdbernardi@gmail.com Area Rep Coordinator Dave Quinn | kwakka9@ozemail.com.au Membership Secretary Mick Godfrey | mgo22098@bigpond.net.au Merchandising Officer Peter Donnellan | peted@internode.on.net Committee Member John King | pir8@internode.on.net Committee Member Stephen O’Farrell | stepheno2812@gmail.com Committee Member (Rally) Paul Rowling | motopaulie@bigpond.com Librarian Lyndon Adams | lyndarra@gmail.com Editor Tom Calderwood | tom@pepperpublishing.com.au

QUARTERLY VJMC MAGAZINE This is a forum for members to exchange ideas and restoration tips, seek advice, share opinions and experiences, or anything else relating to the club’s objectives. Contributions are very welcome.

147 CONTENTS

President’s Report

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Toogoolawah Ride

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South East QLD News

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Central VIC News

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Good Vibrations

13

Finger Freezer

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Where It All Began

18

2019 National Rally Update

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National Rally - The Ride Home

27

Colin Hopkins

30

Suzuka Tour

37

Members Directory

41

Club Info

40

Club Permits/Registration

43

Membership Renewal

44

Please Contribute

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PRESIDENTS REPORT

WOW THIS YEAR IS FLYING BY AGAIN. FOR US IN THE NORTHERN PART OF THE COUNTRY THIS IS THE BEST TIME OF THE YEAR FOR RIDING AND WE HAVE SOME GOOD BIKE SHOWS AND SWAP MEETS HAPPENING NOW. BACK IN MAY WE HAD THE RAY OWEN CONCOURS AT THE CANUNGRA SHOWGROUNDS.

This event just gets bigger every year with a wonderful collection of motorcycles on display and lots of goodies for sale at the swap meet which happens there as well. We didn’t have a display there this year however some of our members did display their bikes in the show.

It’s an ideal location in the hinterland behind the Gold Coast with hundreds of motorcyclists visiting the cafe’s and shops there every weekend. Next year we will have to have a display there. The South East Queensland group had a good display of motorcycles on our club stand at this years Laverda Concours at Cleveland Showgrounds on Brisbane’s bayside. This year the organizers were blessed with perfect weather which attracted several thousand visitors to the show. The VJMC display this year featured about 12 bikes and signs advising visitors of our 35 years celebrations. The stand drew lots of attention resulting in many enquiries into the club. With the club banners and flags up it was a highly visible stand. A big thank you to those involved in the setting up of the display and also to Scott for those wonderful 35 years signs. The concours although being down on numbers this year did have some fine restored motorcycles entered however I think the Japanese section

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which has only two categories needs to have another category included to the current Pre 1980 and Post 1980. This category is the largest by far now with the British section way down on numbers. However it was a great day.

Going on holidays at the end of July up through Longreach to Karumba on the Gulf and then accross to the coast and up to Cooktown before making my way back down the coast to Brisbane. Looking forward to catching up with some our club members in Cairns, Port Douglas and Mackay on the way back down.

This will be one of the highlights of the trip as I always enjoy meeting our members whenever I can. I also like getting members in regional area’s together so they can enjoy the benefits of having other members in the area to meet with and swap advice with and to socialize. If you live in area and would like to know of other members in your area send me off an email and I will contact any members in your area to see if they are happy to give out contact information. Above all, enjoy these wonderful older motorcycles and stay safe.

John McNair President.

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PRESIDENTS REPORT

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SEQ NEWS

TOOGOOLAWAH RIDE WORDS AND PHOTO’S BY JOHN MCNAIR.

THIS RIDE ON JUNE 24 WAS TO BE A COMBINED RIDE WITH THE HONDA CB750 OF QLD AND UPON ARRIVAL AT THE MEETING SPOT WHICH WAS THE BP GARAGE AT BLACKSOIL ON THE TOOWOOMBA ROAD WEST OF BRISBANE THERE WERE A FEW MEMBERS OF EACH CLUB THERE.

As the departure time arrived we had ten bikes with eleven people on board. Another large group that had been parked next to us had left about 15 minutes before us with the majority of their bikes being cruisers and several noisy Ha’ Ha’Ha’Harl’ Harley Davidsons. (Sorry, a bit of a stutter there).

We headed west along the Warrego Hwy to Marburg where we turned north to Glamorganvale and on to Lowood via the Glamorganvale-Lowood Rd which even though a lot of it is 80kph zone is a very pleasant ride. As the road leaves the village of Glamorganvale it starts a steady climb before cresting a hill to give a beautiful panorama of Lowood and the Brisbane River.

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From Lowood we rode east on to Fernvale (home of the famous Fernvale Pie Shop) and then turned north again onto the Brisbane Valley Way. This road crosses over the wall of the massive Wivenhoe Dam and then up the western side of the dam however our route took us up the eastern foreshore towards Mount Glorious. This is a very picturesque ride as we climbed up over Splityard Creek Resevoir with spectacular views over the dam and over several bridges as the Wivenhoe waters filled up the many valleys along the way. At the turn off to Mount Glorious we came across our cruiser riders having a friendly chat with several Police. Well maybe not so friendly www.vjmc.org.au

SEQ NEWS

as one was on his knees and cuffed and another standing nearby cuffed. It appears they had arranged to meet another rider there who had come over Mount Glorious and had decided not to stop when requested by the Police. Not a good idea. Obviously didn’t know about those little things called radios. Drrrrr!

We continued north to Somerset Dam on the Stanley River which flows into the Brisbane River just a little way downstream from the Dam. The Somerset Village café was a morning tea stop and it was here we found out the fate of the cruiser riders when a couple of them rode in.

Although not quite as large as Wivenhoe Dam,

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the Somerset Dam extends almost up to Kilcoy on the D’Agular Hwy and was first suggested

by Sir Henry Somerset after the devastating 1893 floods. The Stanley River at that time had two major floods in two weeks, the second one sending a torrent of water through Brisbane more than two meters higher than the 1974 flood. Billy Mateer, a local stockman completed one of the most amazing feats of horsemanship when he rode a horse named Lunatic up over Mount Mee and down through Dayboro to Petrie through night and day in pouring rain in a race against the flood to send a telegram to Brisbane to warn them of the impending torrent.

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SEQ NEWS

From Somerset Village the road twists and turns as it follows the western foreshore of Somerset Dam with magnificent panoramas distracting concentration on the many corners before reaching Gregors Creek Rd on our left. This great road climbs up over a range in a westerly direction before descending through farming country back to the Brisbane Valley Way just south of Harlen. A short run south from here had us arriving at the Toogoolawah Hotel for one of their amazing $12.00 lunch specials. Here we met up with Ben & Chris from the Honda Four Club who had come a different way from the northern side of Brisbane. Eric & Merilyn caught up with us here too after having charging problems with one of their bikes. It was a good effort that they made it having to change batteries on the way so the other bike could recharge the flat one. It was a cool ride during the early part with the temperature into the single digits before climbing to the mid teens for the ride home. A fantastic day.

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SEQ NEWS

SOUTH EAST QLD NEWS HELLO EVERYBODY. WELL WE HAVE HAD SOME PRETTY COLD MORNINGS OF LATE BUT THE DAYS HAVE BEEN MAGNIFICENT. SATURDAY MORNINGS ARE STILL POPULAR AT TONY’S CAFÉ WITH MANY OR OUR MEMBERS MEETING THERE FOR BREAKFAST AND OR COFFEE.

One of the big advantages with this venue is plenty of safe off street parking except on the rare occasions when they have special displays there.

It’s also easy to find being in the Motorcycles R Us premises at Underwood.

I wasn’t able to attend the day ride to Toogoolawah with the Honda CB750 club however I am told it was a great day with perfect weather and great roads. I believe they had about 12 bikes on this run.

One event I was on though was the Lightweight Ride back in June. We didn’t have many tiddlers except for Aaron who rode his Honda CB125 in from Ipswich to Redland Bay to join us on the ride before riding back out to Ipswich. He must have clock up 200 klms in the day. Other bikes on the ride were a T350 Suzuki, Honda CX500, Suzuki T500 and John met us at the Mount Cotton café on his Honda CB750 after another commitment. This ride took us from the Redland Bay Hotel around several roads before taking the West Mount Cotton Road for morning tea at the café in the nursery on top of Mount Cotton. This www.vjmc.org.au

is good little café for a stop over with views to Brisbane City and nice food.

In the beginning of July we had ride up to the Pitstop Café for a show and shine there. Some morning showers were a pain at the start of the ride however it cleared as we got near there so all was good. This was a good event in this amazing café perched high on the edge of the mountain with views and memorabilia.

The 2018 Concours which was hosted by the Laverda Club was held in Mid July with quite a large number of spectators. Our club display attracted a lot of attention with 15 machines on display. Graeme also had his 1965 Kawasaki/ Merguro in the Concours.

Don’t forget we have our monthly meetings at the Belmont Tavern on the second Tuesday of the month. Meet there from 6.30am for a meal with the meeting at 7.30p.

Ride Safe – Scott Abbett.

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VIC NEWS

CENTRAL VICTORIA

CENTRAL VIC REGION CATER TO MEMBERS (OBVIOUSLY) IN THE CENTRAL AREA OF VICTORIA.

Our primary membership is geo-located around Bendigo and it’s surrounding suburbs; eg. Lockwood South, Junortoun, White Hills, Eaglehawk, Strathfieldsaye, etc.

It then starts to extend out all directions as we have members attending from Northern areas such as Goornong, Echuca, Kyabram, Rochester ... down south from Riddells Creek ... West from Maryborough and almost to Ballarat (Western Region).

By default CV meet every Sunday at 10am at Garlands Bakery in Kangaroo Flat (southern Bendigo suburb) for a coffee and a chat.

Approximately once a month we will attempt a ride “somewhere” (weather etc permitting).

Under my custodianship, the rides are not

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VIC NEWS

generally long epics, but shorter rides designed for maximum patronage, specifically allowing members to ride their VJMs rather than modern bikes.

Typically our Sunday morning coffee meeting will get at a minimum 7-8 bikes, more often than not about 15 and up to 25’ish if all the planets align. Seeing 25 VJMs parked on the main street of Kangaroo Flat – all different makes, models, colours – is usually an awesome sight. Generally we will have one or two passers-by strike up a conversation about the “old bike” they once owned …

Most people in Bendigo seem to know about the group of motorcyclists who lurk outside Garlands Bakery on Sunday mornings.

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VIC NEWS

CV have also introduced a fortnightly Wednesday morning coffee for the “independently wealthy” members who have time on their hands. This event generally has good patronage.

CV members are kept informed outside the National Committee messages, using a local Facebook and emailing list .. and a few Luddites who have to be individually called. Primarily this is used to notify members when there is a change to the default Sunday morning coffee.

Members from other regions and even some non-members are included to widen the scope of our social appeal.

If you are in Bendigo on a Sunday morning, swing by to say hello ..

Rod Gilbert – VJMC-CV Regional Rep

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VIC NEWS

LOCAL VJMC-CV MEMBER DAVID BICE FOUND AN ARTICLE ABOUT THE IMMINENT OPENING OF THE GOOD VIBRATIONS MOTORCYCLE MUSEUM IN MATHOURA NSW.Â

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VIC NEWS

Despite the fact it was not yet open, David tracked down the owners and arranged for VJMC-CV take a tour.

On 20th May – a cool and overcast day - a number of members left Epsom (Bendigo suburb) to ride to Mathoura. Along the way we picked up some other members from more northern lands and headed into NSW. We did stop once on the 1+hour trip for the two-stroke triples to fill up – range anxiety.

Despite David’s planning, we did encounter extensive roadworks in NSW so some of the nicer machines got a little dirty (my not nice GS750E was already dirty so didn’t matter) Arriving at Mathoura, the Museum is in an old Supermarket off the main street, so plenty of room for bikes and plenty of parking.

The museum has a great selection of bikes, a

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VIC NEWS

lot of which have been run at events such as the Broadford Bonanza. All very cool.

The Museum also has a great café attached, which was much appreciated.

The museum even generously donated some electricity to one VJMC-CV who forgot to top up his electricity before he left. He also noticed he’d sacrificed a rear shock bolt to roadwork gods in NSW. The trip was mostly uneventful, aside from said member running out of electricity arriving home in his own driveway. Aside from that .. was a great little interstate run.

Rod Gilbert VJMC-CV Regional Rep

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VIC NEWS

FINGER FREEZER EVERY YEAR THE VICTORIAN REGIONS – PRIMARILY MELBOURNE, WESTERN AND CENTRAL – GATHER ON THE LAST SUNDAY OF JUNE IN THE CENTRAL VICTORIAN TOWN OF KYNETON.

Kyneton isn’t known for much other than being one of the coldest places in Victoria; only slightly warmer than Ballarat usually.

As usual, the RSVP response from Central Vic members was “limited”, but on the day, despite it being cold, it was sunny, so approximately twenty (if memory serves) VJMC members departed from Kangaroo Flat (Bendigo suburb) with my very manly pink ’71 Suzuki T500 (ex Carl Schubert bike) in the lead.

In previous years our usual rider leader Al Haines

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would have taken us some long, wandering route over icy, moss covered mountain goat tracks, but this year with me in the lead it was a quick blast down the Calder Freeway ... 40 minutes and there.

Upon arrival in Kyneton, Melbourne and Western were already there. Approximately another 10 VJMC-CV members arrived by other routes (people from Echuca, Rochester, Kyabram, Riddells Creek, etc). We all enjoyed award winning pies from the Country Cobb Bakery.

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VIC NEWS

There was a confirmed count of fifty five bikes and an estimate that the real number was around sixty. A great effort to all that participated. It’s a wonderful sight to see a street lined on both sides with VJMs of all makes, models, colours and years.

A big thankyou to the organisers, and especially on CV side to Ivan Eeles for his organising with Melbourne group, and with the Bakery and local constabulary.

As far as I know everyone had a great morning … and importantly everyone made it home without incident.

Rod Gilbert VJMC-CV Regional Rep

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WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

( MOR E

OR

L E S S )

BY JEFF EELES

I WA S FI N I SH I N G SECO N DA RY SCH OO L AT TH E EN D O F ’71, A N D WA S TO STA RT A D I PLOM A CO U R SE AT TH E B EN D I G O I N STIT U TE O F TECH N O LO GY, N OW K N OW N A S TH E L ATRO B E U N I V ER SIT Y – B EN D I G O C A M PUS TH E FO L LOW I N G Y E A R . B U T, M O R E I M P O RTA N TLY … I WA N T E D A MOTO R B I K E!

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WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

Despite being the first known member of our family to express an interest in motorbikes, I found little resistance from my parents, surprisingly.

Over the Christmas break, I’d worked at a local factory and put away some cash. I don’t remember how much exactly, but it was enough to get myself a tidy little bike, I thought.

A quick look about Bendigo’s motorbike shops found a couple of possibilities, and the most likely prospect was a little, red Kawasaki G1-L 90 of about 1967 vintage.

Now, I have to admit that apart from wanting a motorbike, in all honesty, I knew virtually nothing about them and, in the short-term, I don’t think I learnt too much more either!

So, the G1-L was duly delivered by a guy from Conroys (Motorcycles and Power Equipment). I was given a quick, 5 minute ‘brief’, handed the key and a spare spark plug … ominous or what! ,,, and the guy disappeared.

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Somehow, I quickly taught myself to ride. We lived in a very sparsely populated area, so I started out up and down our street.

Between getting the little Kwacka, and the eventual commuting duties, I had a few months spare before I could get my Learner’s Permit, and often used it around the local area, away from the eyes of the law.

I still hadn’t learnt too much about engines either, but I did manage to foul a few plugs for whatever reason. A friend and not-sonear neighbor was Trevor Bowles. Trevor’s brother John owned Competition Motorcycles in Bendigo, so Trevor became a ‘go to’ guy whenever the Kwacka failed to proceed, as it seemed to want to do from time to time.

After a while, and now with a Learner’s Permit, I managed to knock up some commuting miles and even a few short rides just for fun. One day though, the little red bike failed to proceed again. Trevor took it home to fix it for me, and many weeks past with nothing happening. The weeks became months.

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WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

Eventually, she became a trade-in on a brand new Kawasaki S1 250 triple.

But the little red 90 was not forgotten, and some years later as I attended the occasional swap meet, I began looking for a G1-L 90 again.

At a Bendigo swap meet, a couple of years running, I’d see some guys zipping around on a bike that initially looked like a G1-L, but was a bit bigger. The chance to get a closer look at it, showed it to be a Kawasaki B1L-A 125, and so I thought, if I’m never going to find another G1-L, I may as well look for a B1L too.

I have to admit that I was never looking all that hard for either model, but always kept an ear out, just in case something popped up. And so it did.

Reading a copy of Just Bikes one day in the

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very early ‘90’s, I happened across an advert for Ryans Motorcycles in NSW. Principally trading in used English bikes by then, they were advertising 3 small Hondas, and a Kawasaki 125 B1. None of the four bikes were priced over $500.

The magazine had been out for a good week or so and, in those pre-internet days, every day a bike had been advertised was another day you’d probably missed out on grabbing a bargain.

But, I called anyway, to be told that the B1 was still available, ran like a dream, and was in nice condition. Sounding too good to be true, I agreed to buy it, and sent off a cheque the next day.

Good friend and former VJMC member, Bernard Andrivon, bought the Hondas and, together, we brought them down from Sydney.

The B1L-A 125 was exactly as described and I still have it today. It’s on a Club Permit, and gets used to ride to Club social nights and Tiddler Runs.

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WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

commuter bikes is a convenient click down from top to neutral as you might roll up to a traffic light, stop sign and so on, then another easy click down for 1st to move off. Cunning little Japs, there’s method in their madness!

Feeling pretty pleased at having snagged a bargain with the B1L, a year or so later I’m f licking through Just Bikes again, and Garners Motorcycles are advertising a 1960’s Kawasaki 90 – with a picture of, yes, you guessed it, a G1-L 90.

I know nothing of the history of either of my 90’s, and to my shame, the 2nd bike has sat in a corner of the shed, untouched for years. I think I’ve started and ridden it twice. It’s a roughy, not having had an easy life, but I’ll not restore it. One day I’ll treat it to the TLC it deserves and keep it as is, as a survivor … and a reminder of the little, red Kawasaki G1-L 90 of about 1967 vintage that really got me into motorcycling and, ultimately, into collecting classic Japanese motorcycles.

Should I buy it? Damn right I should, when will I ever see another G1-L 90 in running order, and a mere $395 to boot!

Although no longer registered, the rego. label was still attached, and was only a few numbers away from my first bike, which was registered DZ-039.

The G1-L and B1-L (the ‘L’ denotes ‘Lubrication’ – oil injected, not premix) both have a 4-speed ‘rotary gearbox’. Unlike our latter ‘return shift’ gearboxes we’re used to on most bikes from the early ‘70’s onward, where you click all the way up to top gear, then change down for the lower gears, the rotary gearbox starts off by shifting down for 1st, and just keeps going down through 2nd, 3rd, 4th, Neutral, 1st, 2nd etc. It is possible to change up if needed, to go back a gear.

What the rotary gearbox means for these smaller

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VJMC INC AUSTR ALIA

NATIONAL RALLY 2019

P L A N N I N G

U P DAT E

H EL LO A L L M EM B ER S. TH E R A L LY COM M IT TEE H A S B EEN AC TI V ELY PL A N N I N G N E X T Y E A R ’S R A L LY. R EM EM B ER, IT I S B EI N G H EL D FROM 17-19 M AY N E X T Y E A R TO M A K E SU R E O U R V I SITO R S E X PER I EN CE TH E B EST O F Q U EEN SL A N D’S W E ATH ER .

You may have seen a section in the website forum where relevant details are being published for the information of members. We will also provide an update in all upcoming magazines.

Rally Central has been confirmed at the Gold Coast Holiday Park, Siganto Drive, Helensvale. This is just off the M1. A discount of 10% on all booked accommodation will be applied for any members or friends mentioning they are attending the Rally. They are already taking bookings so please call the reservation team directly on (07)55144400 or 1300 789 189. There is a wide range of accommodation options within the park. Please note that these booking cannot be made online as all accommodation has been allocated to the VJMC and will

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show as being unavailable. Additional accommodation venues will be identified and advised to members in the coming months.

The Rally dinner will be held at the fabulous Movie World just across the highway from Rally Central and this will also be the start point for our regular rides.

The next few months will see the committee finalising our ride calendar and putting finishing touches to rally merchandising logos and designs.

Should you have any questions that aren’t answered by the posted information, then do not hesitate to contact the Rally Coordinator on NationalRally@vjmc.org.au

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MELBOURNE METRO

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THE RIDE HOME

T W E N T Y

E IGH T E E N

NATIONAL RALLY AFTER ENJOYING A WONDERFUL MEAL AT THE TAMWORTH BOWLS CLUB ON THE SUNDAY NIGHT WITH ABOUT 40 PEOPLE WHO HAD STAYED ON FOR THE SUNDAY NIGHT IT WAS BACK TO THE CABIN AND OFF TO BED FOR AN EARLY START NEXT MORNING.

Myself, Graeme Knight and Ken Knight (no relation) had travelled the New England Hwy over the Moonbie Ranges and also the Fossickers Way through Manilla and Bingara so something a little different was in mind for the trip home. I had often heard of another interesting road off the Nundle Road so we decided to give it a try. Ken and I had ridden out to Nundle and Hanging Rock on the Sunday( which was a great ride too) so I noted which way to go. We left Tamworth and headed out to the small village of Dungowan where we had made a right turn to go to Nundle the day before however this time we went straight ahead

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on our way to “Port Stephens Cutting” which is a beautiful winding road up the range well to the east of the Moonbies. We stopped at the top to take some photo’s before continuing on along Topdale Road to Thunderbolts Way. The cool morning temperature in this high country made riding very pleasant. Other than having to dodge a few cattle grazing the “long paddock” it was an uneventful but beautiful ride in to Walcha where we had breakfast at the Royal Cafe. The Royal Café was once the Royal Hotel but since made into a café with a motorcycle flavour.

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VJM TC H EI NRCI DAEU SHTORMAEL I A

The Thunderbolt’s Way crosses the Oxley Hwy in the centre of Walcha and after breaky we were back on Thunderbolt’s Way (named after Captain Thunderbolt who was a bushranger throughout this area in the early 1800’s) and on our way to Uralla. However we had to make a stop at the cemetery on the way out of town to visit the grave of Nat Buchanan one of our most amazing pioneering drovers. Nat was the first person to drive a huge mob of cattle from Queensland to the Kimberley are of Western Australia along with other incredible feats.

We soon passed through Uralla on the New England Hwy and continued on to the farming community of Bundarra. Not much happening in town there but they have some nice old buildings and an historic bridge over the Gwydir River.

Population here is 676 and at 660 metres it could be a bit cold here in winter.

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Next stop was in Inverell for fuel and lunch. A few dark clouds were on the horizon as we rode north out of town towards Ashford. Was nearly going to stop and put the wet weather gear on here but the dark clouds seemed to be west of where we were heading. Wrong John!!!!!! Yep we rode right into a storm about 20k’s up the road. The wet gear went on now and we continued on through some more showers to the T intersection at Bonshaw on the Bruxner Hwy. The showers cleared a little for the 50 klm ride east on the Bruxner Hwy to Mingoola for the left turn over the Dumaresq River into Queensland.

We headed north not far from Glenlyon Dam to the TexasStanthorpe Rd under very grey skies.

It was only about 2.45pm but with the gloomy weather it felt like about 5pm and I kept the speed down around 80 kph as there was a lot of dead kangaroos along the roadside

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THE RIDE HOME

and even a dead pig. Now I certainly wouldn’t like to hit one of them. I didn’t take long though and the kangaroos were on the move with one coming out in front of me, his tail just missing my front wheel. Not Happy Jan!!!!!!!! Graeme told me later that another one had just missed the back of my bike too. Then to make thing worse it started to bucket down rain again for the last 30 klms into Stanthorpe where we found a motel with undercover parking and set camp for the night.

The motel owner offered to drive us up to the hotel for tea however it stopped raining long enough for us to walk up there for a very nice meal. Got a few drops of rain on the walk back but as we walked into the motel it suddenly began to pour.

the weather was like. Oh Nooooooo!!!!! It’s still bloody raining. Oh well, on with the wet weather gear again and back on the road again stopping in Warwick for breakfast and fuel. The rain continued to fall as we left Warwick for Cunninghams Gap and it was a wet and misty slow ride down the Gap to Aratula and on past Ipswich and into Brisbane. My 750/4 decided to become a 750/3 a few time as moisture obviously found its way into the sparking area. All up , it was a good ride home (except for the rain and kangaroos) and the three bikes performed very well along with their owners. It was good to see some new country around Port Stephens Cutting and Bundarra..

Next morning I had a look out to see what

John McNair

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COLIN HOPKINS

VJ M C

M E M B E R

P R O F I L E

COLIN HOPKINS

BY ANDREW DOMASEVICIUS

I FIRST MET COLIN ABOUT 4 YEARS AGO ON THE WAY TO MY FIRST VJMC NATIONAL RALLY AT VICTOR HARBOUR IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA. I STARTED THE TRIP LATER THAN THE REST OF OUR SMALL GROUP AND WAS RIDING DOWN THE GREAT OCEAN ROAD ON MY WAY TO LORNE WHEN I RECEIVED A TEXT FROM GREG COSTELLO (OUR MONTHLY MID-WEEK RIDE ORGANISER). “MEET YOU AT COLAC WHERE WE HAVE STOPPED FOR MORNING COFFEE AND TO ENJOY COLIN’S PORK PIES.”

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COLIN HOPKINS

So I met the group at Colac and sure enough, Colin was sharing around his pork pies with coffee. He was traveling with our group of riders in his car carrying food and everyone’s luggage. I thought, what a nice old fellow to drive with us. It’s a shame he doesn’t ride a motorbike. Little did I realise at the time that in fact not only did Colin own more than one motorbike, but he also has a long history of riding and racing motorbikes. In fact, I found out later that the year I was born Colin was already riding his first motorbike around Melbourne.

Colin was born in Williamstown in 1940. His early life was not easy and had to learn to deal with various difficult family issues from a very early age. He moved with his family to Castlemaine when he was 8 years and then to Sale two years later where he lived until he was 16 years. At 16 Colin left his family and moved to Melbourne to start a printing apprenticeship. Arriving alone to Melbourne accommodation was arranged for him by the Presbyterian Church.

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At 18 years of age Colin bought his first motorbike, a rigid framed BSA 250cc. He rode it everywhere saying he “rode it into the ground”. The BSA was followed by the legendary Triumph 500cc Speed Twin. He also joined the Vikings and remembers going with a group of riders to Bathurst for a weekend of motorbike racing.

The Triumph was followed by a Matchless 350cc single café racer and then in 1961 Colin traded the Matchless for £35.00 and bought from Mayfair Motorcycles in Elizabeth Street, Melbourne his first new bike for £279.00, a Honda CB72 with electric start! He immediately fitted a Norton racing fairing and Framac racing screen.

He took the Honda to Bathurst in 1962 to the Easter Bathurst racing festival at Mt. Panorama where Colin caught the racing bug and so started his racing career.

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P R I VAT E E R R AC E R Inevitably, Colin started to modify his Honda CB72. He fitted Amal GP carbies tuned for BP J fuel, exhaust megaphones, clip-ons, Manx Norton style racing seat and rear sets. His first race was a club meet at Darley in Bacchus Marsh.

Unfortunately, on the narrow track he was forced off onto the slippery edge and fell off the bike and broke his wrist. With the wrist and bike repaired Colin took to the track once again, this time at Calder Raceway for the Victorian TT and finished 16th from about 28 starters, many of which were British bikes with larger capacity engines. The legendary post WW2 Australian motorbike racer, Ken Rumble, won the race. Colin’s position was a very creditable result given he had no financial or technical support. A true lone privateer. An amateur mixing it with professionals.

Races at various competitions and tracks followed. In 1964 Colin finished 2nd at the South Australian 250cc GP at Mallala Motor Sport Park.

Colin again went to Mt. Panorama that same year for the 5 lap production race on a Norton SS 650cc housing a Burman gearbox.

He was leading into the final lap when disaster struck. He changed down from 4th to 3rd gears only to find a false neutral, so he flicked the lever down again and this time found himself in 2nd and suddenly other riders flying past him.

Colin finished the race in 4th position. The racing gods were not smiling.

In 1965 Colin again raced at Mallala for the South Australian GP in the unlimited class and also at

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Mt. Panorama for the 250cc GP. He was doing very well sitting in 3rd or 4th position when disaster struck and his chain flew off ending his race.

In 1966 Colin rode an ex-Tom Phillis 350cc Manx

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Norton. Phillis was an Australian professional GP motorcycle road racer. He won the 1961 125cc motorcycle road racing World Championship and was the first person to lap the TT mountain circuit at over 100 mph on a pushrod engined motorcycle.

He was also the first person to win a World Championship motorcycle race on a Japanese machine, a works Honda. Tragically, Phillis died while competing in the 1962 Isle of Man TT. In the late 1960’s and on the 350cc Manx Norton Colin won the Senior “B” and was 2nd in the Junior “B” at the Victoria Park Ballarat.

Colin continued to race as a privateer until 1970 when the realities of career, love and perhaps age caught up with him. So he went to Reg

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Hunt and traded his Manx Norton for the most responsible and least conspicuous car in the yard, a V8 Holden Monaro!

Throughout the 1960’s and indeed for his entire working life Colin worked as a printer. In 1970, Colin married Judy Murray and soon enough children were born. Peter in 1970, Kirsty in 1972 and Michael in 1980. Colin and Judy enjoyed family life and watching their children grow up. Sadly, Judy died in 2009.

In 1972 Judy sold her Hilman and with the proceeds Colin bought a green and yellow Honda K1 750cc with 8,000 miles and joined the Four Owners Club (Japanese 4 cylinder bikes). He took the bike and occasionally his wife, Judy on more sedate day rides and rallies.

It was at the Four Owners Club that he met fellow VJMC member and long-time friend, Ron Jarmyn.

MAD MAX 1 The 4 Owners Club had its club rooms at the Fairfield Anglers Club. During one of the Club’s regular meetings at the clubrooms in about June 1977, 3 strangers walked in. They said they were from a film company and wanted to talk about the club members’ bikes.

They said they were specifically scouting for the most modern looking motorbikes, not old British bikes.

bikini fairings and so on. Among the bikes was Charlie Cord’s heavily modified Kawasaki Z900 with a full fairing and 4 headlights strong enough to “melt the tar”. Among the bikes was Colin’s CB750 with Tony Foale’s cantilevered frame. The film scouts evidently liked what they saw as they selected 6 bikes, among them Colin’s CB750.

They explained that the film was a motorbike film set in the future when society was breaking down, petrol was scarce, gangs, hoodlums and homeless people abounded. Wandering bikies ruled the roads and there was generally little to do as the economy and society generally was breaking down. They needed a number of motorbikes and riders to be extras in the film. As the budget was tight they could not offer much and a letter would be posted to each of them providing details of the filming location. As promised, the letters arrived in their mail boxes giving them the date and location of the shoot.

On the appointed day Colin and 2 others strapped on their sleeping bags and gear and rode up to Clunes in central Victoria. As they approached the main street of Clunes, Colin remembers that

They were led outside to where the bikes were parked.

There were bikes with a range of modifications, including black exhaust pipes,

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C OTL AI N MW HO OR PT KH INS

it was set up for filming and fairly clear of people.

To make an impression they decided to ride into town 3 abreast. As it was clear and quite all that could be heard was the thunderous sound of their combined exhausts. They stopped at the film crew who rushed up to them enthusiastically explaining that was exactly the impression they wanted!

Compared with modern filming arrangements and film crew accommodation their digs were far from Hollywood standard. They slept on the floor of the local pub in in their sleeping bags. In the evening, they were briefed on the following day’s shooting. They were told to practise riding into town as a group of homeless wandering bikies and to make sure that they did not look at the cameras!!

There were about 15 of them in the Toecutter’s gang. They were told to take off their numberplates and registration stickers to create a realistic image appropriate for the film setting. They were then told to ride into town, park their bikes in a line and rev them before jumping off and fooling around in the main street, which we of course did.

Then the production crew went off to the train station to film the arrival of the Nightrider’s coffin.

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On the second day we were asked to repeat the previous day’s antics with variations, including throwing a young man out of a milk bar onto the street, and a member of the Vigilantes Club doing a burn out in the street.

There were also some comic elements to this filming. Some of the credited film extras did not really know how to ride motorbikes. They fell off several times and couldn’t handle doing U turns without falling over. Eventually, they got themselves into some sort of order and were filmed riding out of town.

The third day of filming arrived. Colin and the group were taken to the road from Clunes to Ballarat (appropriately named Hopkins Road at the time) to film the Ford F100 carrying the Nightrider’s coffin ride with the bikies riding behind the Ford. On their way to the shoot location a Victoria police patrol car stopped the whole show. The police officer was shocked that a bunch of bikies were speeding in rural Victoria and without numberplates or registration stickers on their bikes. Colin says you could see how pleased the police officer looked. He was sure he was on a winner and a certain promotion for stopping this

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group of hoodlums and issuing multiple penalty notices and summonses. Unfortunately for the police officer, a film crew member produced a letter from the Ballarat mayor explaining the filming and asking all persons to assist in any manner possible.

The police officer slumped in disappointment.

Later in the day Colin and the other extras were told that the film’s principal stuntman, Grant Page, had been injured in an accident whilst filming and that they needed someone else to do a stunt. It was the scene where Steve Bisley, as Jim Goose the motorbike policeman, is run off the road whilst riding his motorbike. They were told a rider was needed to ride up a timber ramp on a camber in the grass and then fly off the bike. As the ramp was on a camber, the bike would fly in one direction and the rider in another predetermined direction and land on a mattress (hopefully) strategically placed in the long grass!! Needless to say none of them agreed. They weren’t that stupid.

And I am sure every reader is keen to know how much Colin and the other uncredited extras were paid for all of this time and work. $15.00 to cover expenses. Cheque in the mail they were told happily for us a copy below. Oh yes, we were given free tickets to the film.

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Two years later Colin received a letter from the Mad Max film company inviting him to participate in the second film. By this time family and employment obligations had caught up with Colin so he never made it to Hollywood!

During my last interview with Colin he told that a reunion to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Mad Max 1 is being organised to take place in Clunes in February 2019. You can bet Colin will be riding one of his bikes to this reunion.

In 1979 Colin bought a CB900 Boldor which he still has in the garage today. Among his other bikes are a CB1100F and a Yamaha XS650 with a CB72 in bits.

Colin joined the VJMC in 2013. Over the past few years Colin has had terrible luck with his bikes.

The XS650 although in terrific condition kept failing. During my last interview with Colin I asked him how his bikes were going. With a happy smile he took me out to the garage and started all three bikes.

All good Colin said! At 78 years of age waiting for the next VJMC ride!

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SUZUKA TOUR

BY MO T OPAU L IE

FOR MANY OF US THE SUZUKA 8 HOUR RACE, MUCH LIKE THE ISLE OF MAN TT, IS ONE OF THOSE ICONIC OVERSEAS RACES THAT WE GREW UP READING ABOUT IN MAGAZINES OR WATCHING ON VIDEO. I’M NOT ENAMOURED WITH THE TERM “BUCKET LIST” BUT IF I DID HAVE ONE THEN THE SUZUKA 8 HOURS WOULD CERTAINLY BE ON IT.

Unfortunately I had not been unable to attend the 2015 trip but after having heard so many good things about it I was determined not to miss the next one, so when it was announced late in 2016 I immediately signed up for the 2017 trip. Now as it happened my retirement was also due in July 2017, so imagine my elation to discover that the retirement date I had chosen fell on the week before the Suzuka trip, finish on Friday, Japan on Monday, talk about favourable omens!

The VJMC Suzuka trip was only made possible thanks to the tireless efforts of Jeff Eeles working

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in conjunction with Olivia at JTB Travel. They put together a splendid itinerary that not only included attendance to the eight hour, the Honda Collection Hall at Montegi and the Yamaha Museum at Hamamatsu but also allowed plenty of opportunity for self-directed sightseeing and cultural pursuits.

Our tour arrangements included the cities of Tokyo, Nagoya, Kyoto, Hiroshima and Osaka. Travel within Japan was a breeze as our Japan Rail (JR) passes gave us access to not only ordinary rail services but also the fabulous Shinkansen inter-city services (bullet train). One aspect of the trip that I particularly liked was that while we were on tour

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together we all had the freedom to explore Japan at our leisure, so even though we had a couple of group activities we were not being herded onto buses and such then hurrying onto the next sight. It was all very relaxed, you could do as much or as little as you liked, all at your own pace, like I said the whole thing was well put together.

The adventure began on Monday July 24th as the two dozen participants converge on Sydney airport for the overnight flight to Haneda airport, one of the two that service the metropolis of Tokyo. We were a diverse group a few had been on the 2015 trip but others who were first timers. Introductions were made and the excitement was almost palpable amongst the cadre. Finally the call to board flight QF25 came and we joined queue to find our slots in the 747. As flights go it was uneventful and ten and a half hours later, 0530 local time, we were at Haneda airport where we shuffled off the aircraft, collected our luggage then breezed through customs and here we were, in Japan! This was my first time in here and my initial impression was how very hot and humid it was, it didn’t take me long to unzip the lower legs of my travel pants shorts were definitely the order of the day. Soon we were on our way to our digs in Shinagawa, the impressively named Grand Prince New Takanawa Hotel. And it certainly is a grand and opulent place. We had three nights in Tokyo, so after checking in and ditching our luggage it was time to explore Tokyo.

My travelling companion, crazy Steve, and I then set off by foot to the Tokyo Tower and the shrine to Lord Asano and the 47 Ronin. These guys have acquired Ned Kelly like reverence in Japan due to their loyalty to their master, Lord Asano, their adherence to the code of Bushido and their resultant sacrifice.

Basically, Lord Asano is tricked into insulting the Shogun by a jealous court member, Lord Kira, after which his punishment is the confiscation of his lands and titles and he is ordered to perform seppuku. His Samurai are forbidden by the Shogun to seek revenge upon Kira and are dispersed; Samurai who have lost

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their master are called Ronin. Despite this they eventually regroup and wreak retribution upon Kira by taking his head and parading it to Asano’s grave.

The Shogun is naturally angered by this defiance and orders them to perform seppuku after which they are buried with Asano. The grave site is in the grounds of a temple and is quite a moving place. So in the first few hours we had roamed about in Tokyo, and I was impressed how ordered Japan is, the traffic while being very busy was by no means out of control, everyone including pedestrians stopped at light and waited, no car horns were blasting away in anger, the place was neat and tidy, no rubbish to be seen anywhere and the people were friendly and helpful. Just wonderful!

Before we left home, Steve and I had organized a day trip to Mount Fuji and Lake Hakone for the day, so we were collected from our hotel and out to Fuji we went, unfortunately Fuji-san was bashful that day and shrouded in cloud, apparently a fairly frequent occurrence, but the trip was well worth it, Lake Hakone is quite picturesque. While we were at Fujisan some of the others paid a visit to Ueno where

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many motorcycle shops are congregated. Several interesting items were secured including helmets, some riding apparel but the best was the full Katana exhaust system! What a score.

The next day we all went up to Montegi to the Honda collection Hall. What a place. A multi-storied museum of Honda’s history both two and fourwheeled, and well worth the visit even if you are not a fan of the big H. Inside you will find everything from the clip on Cub motor to the fabulous GP screamers of the sixties. The list is truly fantastic and includes the oval pistoned vee-fours, the vee five RCV’s, the two stroke NSR’s, RC30’s and an enormous array of other machines. There is also a significant number of four wheeled history there as well.

The next day we had our first taste of the Shinkansen on our journey to Nagoya. The Shinkansen are just awesome machines, rocketing along at in excess of three hundred kays but so smooth and stable, hi-tech marvels. So we were down to business as from Nagoya it is just a couple of short train ride to Suzuka and a short hike up to the circuit. Did I

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mention it was hot and humid? Everywhere we went folk were handing out fan and I can tell you they were very much appreciated. Another local trick is the use of water soaked neck towels which were very effective. Anyway here we are at the circuit, the place is very crowded but quite manageable and there are plenty of exhibits from the different manufacturers, accessory suppliers and speed shops, fantastic. This

Over the following week we continued on our travels visiting the Yamaha museum at Hamamatsu and Kawasaki Good Times World at Kobe.

We also visited the Peace Park at Hiroshima, quite a sobering experience, the giant aquarium at Osaka which has two young whale sharks amongst its residents, Nara’s Todai-ji and Daibutsu (great Buddha), Kinkaku-ji at Kyoto, lots of teppanyaki bars and many other wondrous and significant places too many to cover in the scope of this story. For me the trip was a fantastic experience, well worth the ticket price, Japan is a well ordered, clean and tidy place, the people are friendly and helpful and the food fantastic and overall nothing is expensive, you can even drink the water! The two days at Suzuka may be a bucket list item but the scenery and cultural experiences were simply wonderful.

I would like to publicly thank Jeff for not only organizing the trip but also for his patient support to us all while we were over there. I know he has said that he is not going to do another one but perhaps if enough folk are interested and ask him nicely Jeff might be persuaded to do it one more time, I’ll certainly be on board if he does.

was the 40th anniversary of the 8 hour and as part of the celebration there was a display of past machine sand interviews with Kenny Roberts, Graeme Crosby and Kevin Swantz. The racing was intense, the heat also intense but the mood of the spectators relaxed and happy. The race was won by the Yamaha Factory Racing team of Alex Lowes, Katsuyuki Nakasuga and Michael van der Mark, with the Kawasaki Team Green coming in second just over two minutes behind after eight hours. No visit to Suzuka could be complete without a spin on the iconic Ferris wheel which provides quite a view.

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BUSINESS DIRECTORY

IF YOU ARE A VJMC MEMBER AND YOU WOULD LIKE TO PROMOTE YOUR BUSINESS ON THIS PAGE, PLEASE EMAIL YOUR DETAILS TO ADRIAN DIXON AT ADIXON@CONTECHENGINEERING.COM Allen Sutton The Hydroblast Shop 3/ 41-43 Sinclair Rd, Dandenong, Vic 3175 0400 516 979 www.thehydroblastshop.com.au Superior restoration of automotive, motorcycle and industrial components. We can make those engine casings, barrels, heads, carbies and intricate parts look like new again. Let our experience be a part of your next restoration project. Visit our website for more detail.

Tri-Spark Electronic Ignition Systems South Australia, export world wide sales@trispark.com.au | www.trispark.com.au 08 8371 1664 Specialises in ignition systems for classic bikes.

Our reputation for supplying a top-quality product and technical support is unmatched. We also stock ignition coils, voltage regulators and accessories. We are happy to hear from members about their bike electrical requirements and answer their questions. Please visit our website and get in touch.

Alan Jansen Pals Automotive Services 11/42 New St, Ringwood 3134.

Motorcycle & car RWC inspections in Melbourne’s Eastern suburbs by ‘Vintage Friendly’ inspectors.

By appointment only. www.palsautos.com.au | alan@palsautos.com.au 03 9879 6044 Frank Van Den Broek Garage Door & Gate Solutions 23 Cantebury Roar, Braeside Victoria 3195 9587 4000 www.garagedoorsolutions.com.au www.vjmc.org.au

Steve Gittings Printforme 03 5334 2605 | 0417 336 360 printforme@ncable.net.au Design. Print. Finish. Offset and digital printing.

Ned Vernon Traditional trained metalsmith specialising in finely crafted motorcycle fabrication. Working in both aluminium and steel manufacture, specialist of tanks fairing and crafting one off custom designs. www.clavo-loco.com | nedvernon@gmail.com 0403 805 301 Richard Scoular Classic Bikes Direct 41A Jarrah Drive, Braeside. Victoria 3195 0400 222 040 | www.classicbikesdirect.com.au Let our world wide network be your advantage when buying a Classic to add to your collection, Nearly 40 years industry experience.

Tony and Catherine Fresh as Bread Cafe 76 Aberdeen Road, Macleod Victoria 3085 For VJMC members: your first coffee is complimentary, great quiet location off main roads, opposite park, with plenty of parking right in front of cafe. Good stop for group rides.

Alan Davis Abraham Lincoln Motel 343 Armidale Road. East Tamworth NSW 2340 02 6766 1233 | info@abrahamlincoln.com.au www.abrahamlincoln.com.au VJMC members can receive a 10% discount on their accommodation when they book direct with the motel, stating they are a current member of the VJMC. VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

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CLUB INFO

REGIONAL MEETS

Meetings are open to both VJMC members and the general public.

Meetings will qualify as a Club Plate ride in most states and territories.

Please direct further enquiries to your local meeting convener using an email address below. Please enter VJMC MEETING in the subject line.

BELCONNEN: 7:30 PM - 3rd Wednesday of each month.

Belconnen Soccer Club.

Belconnen Way, Hawker. ACT. David Quinn – 0412 695 738 Meeting.ACT@vjmc.org.au

TAMWORTH: 6.30 PM last Thursday of each month.

Tamworth City Bowling Club.

ANZAC Park. Brisbane St, Tamworth. NSW. Paul Rowling – 0411 696 852 Meeting.Tamworth@vjmc.org. au

NEW SOUTH WALES

QUEENSLAND

LOWERHUNTER: 7:20 PM - 2nd Thursday of each month.

Club Macquarie. 458 Lake Road, Argenton. NSW. Bill Keevers – 0438 646117 Meeting.LowerHunter@vjmc. org.au

S.E. QUEENSLAND:7:00 PM - 2nd Tuesday of each month.

Belmont Tavern. Cnr Burstall Ave & Belmont Rd, Belmont.

Qld. Scott Abbett – 0466 561 008 Meeting.Brisbane@vjmc.org.au

ILLAWARRA: 7:00 PM - 1st Wednesday of each month.

Ocean Beach Hotel. 2 Addison St, Shellharbour. NSW. Barry Fitzgerald – 0487 746 020 Meeting.Illawarra@vjmc.org.au

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

ACT / SOUTHERN NSW

MID HUNTER: 7:00 PM - 1st Tuesday of each even-numbered month. Greta Workers Club.

Cnr New England Hwy & West St, Greta. NSW. Allan Kensitt – 0405 492700 Meeting.MidHunter@vjmc. org.au SYDNEY: 7:00 PM - 2nd Wednesday of each month.

Prospect Hotel. Great Western Highway, Prospect. NSW. Paul Johnson - 0481 142 175 Meeting.Sydney@vjmc.org.au Paul Lenehan – 0408 825126 Meeting.Sydney1@vjmc.org.au

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ADELAIDE: 6:30 PM - last Thursday of each month except December. Tonsley Hotel. South Road, Clovelly Park. SA. Mick Godfrey Meeting.Adelaide@vjmc.org.au

VICTORIA CENTRAL VICTORIA: 10:00 AM - every Sunday morning.

Garlands Bakehouse & Cafe.

124 High Street, Kangaroo Flat.

Vic. Rodney Gilbert – 0439 327 283 or Meeting.CentralVictoria@vjmc. org.au

MELBOURNE: 7:00 PM last Tuesday of each month.

Grandview Hotel. Cnr Station Street & Heidelberg Rd, Fairfield. Vic. No contact MORNINGTON PENINSULA: 10:00 AM 2nd Sunday of each month.

Balnarring Beach General Store. 181 Balnarring Beach Rd, Balnarring Beach. Vic. Dave Parker – 0416 154 056 Meeting.MorningtonPeninsula @vjmc.org.au WEST GIPPSLAND: 10:00 AM - last Sunday each Month.

Prior to ride at 11:00 AM. East Bound Caltex Service & Station.

Princess Hwy, Longwarry North. Vic. Mick Gunn – 0439 537 901 Meeting.WestGippsland@vjmc. org.au WESTERN VICTORIA: 9:30 AM - every Sunday followed by ride last Sunday of each month at 10:30 AM. Krooze In Cafe 1/4 Boak Ave, Mount Helen VIC. Vic Muller – 0429 160 856 or Meeting.WesternVictoria@ vjmc.org.au

GOULBURN MURRAY: 10:00 AM - 1st Sunday of each month. Kyabram. 135 Allan St,Kyabram. Vic. Garry Lennie – 0459 233020 email T.B.A.

VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

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VJMC INC AUSTR ALIA

HISTORIC REGISTRATION VJMC Members may apply for historic registration, however, please note the club objective: To foster the preservation, restoration, riding and enjoyment of ownership of Japanese motorcycles.

Historic registration is aimed at preserving historic vehicles, as a result modified or customised motorcycles may be ineligible for historic registration in your state. Please check the links to documentation for Club Permit/Registration in your state or territory to check your bike’s eligibility.

The N.S.W. RMS is now trialling a 60 day log book scheme. The VJMC is registered as a participant in that trial.

Provided below are the websites in each state that will be of assistance. You will need to enter “historic vehicle registration” or similar into the search bar.

A number of VJMC email address are also provided for further enquiries.

AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY: www.accesscanberra.act.gov.au.

QUEENSLAND: www.qld.gov.au

Email: ClubRegistration.ACT@vjmc.org.au

Email: ClubRegistration.Qld@vjmc.org.au

NEW SOUTH WALES: www.councilofmotorclubs.org.au www.rms.nsw.gov.au vjmc.org.au Club Registration (Sydney) email: ClubRegistration.Sydney@vjmc.org.au Club Registration(other): ClubRegistration.NSW@vjmc.org.au

NORTHERN TERRITORY: nt.gov.au Email: ClubRegistration.NT@vjmc.org.au

www.vjmc.org.au

SOUTH AUSTRALIA: www.sa.gov.au ClubRegistration.SA@vjmc.org.au

TASMANIA: http://www.transport.tas.gov.au ClubRegistration.Tas@vjmc.org.au

VICTORIA: www.vicroads.vic.gov.au vjmc.org.au Email: ClubRegistration.Vic@vjmc.org.au

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VJMC INC AUSTR ALIA

AREA REPRESENTATIVES VJMC Area Representatives are available to assist with

Please enter VJMC ENQUIRY in the email subject line.

any aspect of the VJMC they can but particularly club

More Info on becoming a regional rep: Contact Alan Stork

membership activities local to them. If they are unable to

on 0401 995 061 if you are interested in getting VJMC

assist you directly, they will do their best to direct your

happening in your area.

enquiry to the best available person or resource to resolve it.

ACT / SOUTHERN NSW Canberra David Quinn – 0412 695 738 Canberra@vjmc.org.au

Mid Hunter Allan Kensitt – 0405 492 700 MidHunter@vjmc.org.au

NEW SOUTH WALES

Mid North Coast Stephen Wardle – TBA MidNorthCoast@vjmc.org.au

Armidale Greg Inglis – 0408 669 986 Armidale@vjmc.org.au

North West NSW Garry Hennessy – 0418 496 538 NWNSW@vjmc.org.au

Broken Hill Samuel Muscat – 0412 208 898 BrokenHill@vjmc.org.au

Orange Peter Ezzy – 0427 663 246 Orange@vjmc.org.au

Central Coast Andrew Johnson – 0417 654 461 CentralCoast@vjmc.org.au

Sydney David Bernardi – 0431 661 769 Sydney@vjmc.org.au

Far North Coast Rob Andrews FarNorthCoast@vjmc.org.au

Sydney Inner Stephen O’Farrell – 0434 066 966 SydneyInner@vjmc.org.au

Illawarra Vacant Illawarra@vjmc.org.au

Sydney South & West Allan Dykstra – 0418 866 917 SydneySW@vjmc.org.au

LowerHunter Bill Keevers – 0438 646 117 LowerHunter@vjmc.org.au

Tamworth: Paul Rowling – 0411 696 852 Tamworth@vjmc.org.au

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VJMC INC AUSTR ALIA

NORTHERN TERRITORY Darwin: vacant Darwin@vjmc.org.au

East Gippsland Steve Millikan EastGippsland@vjmc.org.au

Queensland

Geelong Alistair Elliot – 0400 109 124 Geelong@vjmc.org.au

Gold Coast Graham Heise – 0401 046 531 GoldCoast@vjmc.org.au

Kyabram Garry Lennie – 0428 542 479 Kyabram@vjmc.org.au

Mackay Peter & Helen Douglas – 0408 186 439 Mackay@vjmc.org.au

Melbourne Phil Scorah – 0412 162 863 Melbourne@vjmc.org.au

S.E. Queensland Scott Abbett – 0466 561 008 SEQueensland@vjmc.org.au

Mornington Peninsula David Parker – 0416 154 056 MorningtonPeninsula@vjmc.org.au

Sunshine Coast vacant SunshineCoast@vjmc.org.au

N.E. Victoria Ian Brightmore – 0419 888 020 NEVictoria@vjmc.org.au

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

N.W. Victoria Robert Traeger – 0418 145 393 NWVictoria@vjmc.org.au

Adelaide Mick Godfrey – 0401 196 922 Adelaide@vjmc.org.au

TASMANIA

West Gippsland Michael Gunn – 0439 537 901 WestGippsland@vjmc.org.au

Launceston John Murray – 0413 452 341 Tasmania@vjmc.org.au

Western Victoria Victor Muller – 0429 160 856 WesternVictoria@vjmc.org.au

VICTORIA

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Central Victoria Rodney Gilbert – 0429 327 283 CentralVictoria@vjmc.org.au

Perth and W.A. David Williams – 0418 687 855 Perth@vjmc.org.au

www.vjmc.org.au

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VJMC INC AUSTR ALIA

Annual subs VJMC Inc I f your fees are due, please complete and send this renewal slip with payment.

Direct Credit is now available. If paying by direct credit, please complete and send this renewal as confirmation.

OFFICIAL USE ONLY Received Renewal Date Received $

Member No Cash / Cheque / MO / Direct Debit Name Receipt No Due Date Reply Sent Cost: $40 single, $50 family.

Additional Info (address/contact change etc)

Email I give the VJMC Committe and Reps permission for my contact details to be provided to other members on request.

(Name, phone, email and locality only).

Signed Date Cheques / Money orders payable to VJMC Inc, or Direct Credit: VJMC Inc Australia BSB 062-801 ACC 10-240-688 (Commonwealth) Please include your member number as detail.

Send to: VJMC Inc PO Box 254 Modbury North SA 5092

46

VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

From ANNUAL FEES Australian Residents Family (member + 1 other) New Zealand Overseas

1/6/18 1/7/18 NEW RENEW $45 $40 $55 $50 $50 $45 $55 $50 www.vjmc.org.au

PLEASE CONTRIBUTE Email contributions to: tom@pepperpublishing.com.au

NEXT ISSUE DEADLINE: NOVEMBER 1 ST